George C. Marshall

This portrait of George C. Marshall by M. Napthine hangs in the George C. Marshall room of the Lightfoot Restaurant in the building formerly the  Peoples National Bank in Leesburg, Virginia.

“George Catlett Marshall Jr. (December 31, 1880 – October 16, 1959) was an American statesman and soldier. He rose through the U.S. Army to become Chief of Staff under presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, then served as Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense under Truman. Winston Churchill lauded Marshall as the ‘organizer of victory’ for his leadership of the Allied victory in World War II, although Marshall declined a final field leadership position that went to his protégé, later U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower. After the war, as Secretary of State, Marshall advocated a significant U.S. economic and political commitment to post-war European recovery, including the Marshall Plan that bore his name. In recognition of this work, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953.” – Wikipedia